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The importance of rediscovering Clay Buchholz

MIAMI -- At about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday night, the Red Sox let out a collective sigh of relief.

The immediate gratification came in the form of Clay Buchholz striking out the side after allowing a leadoff triple to the Marlins' Jose Reyes in the first inning of what would ultimately be a 2-1 victory for the Red Sox at Marlins Park.

But that was only part of the payoff.

With Buchholz' ability to escape the threat with a mixture of two-seam fastballs, changeups, curveballs and cutters came the realization that the Red Sox had their pitcher back. A month ago, such a scenario would have been disastrous. This time? It was simply the foundation for a seven-inning, one-run gem, and something much more important -- the Sox had one of their starting staff's building blocks back.

"Just the confidence knowing that this pitch is going to work instead of second-guessing it," Buchholz said when asked what the difference was between his recent mindset and what he endured during the season's first month or so. "That's when I got in trouble."

It took a while, but Buchholz is officially back.

In his last four starts, the righty has gone 3-0 with an ERA of 1.45 over 31 innings, striking out 28 and walking just six. During the span opponents are hitting .213 against him.

In case this seems familiar, it should considering during Buchholz's last nine starts before being sidelined for the season with back problems he went 5-0 (with the team going 8-1) with a 2.59 ERA in 55 2/3 innings. It was a stretch in which he struck out 45, walked 15 and allowed an opponents batting average of .204.

Compare those numbers with what we witnessed for Buchholz's initial nine starts this season, and it isn't difficult to decipher why there might be some concern. That was a stretch in which the starter's ERA stood at 7.84 with a opponent's batting average of .330, to go along with as many walks as he had strikeouts (27).

"That's when i told myself, 'The ERA is going to be high for a while. Don't worry about the ERA. Forget about the ERA and just try and win games for your team,' " he said. "That's where I've been since then."

"I've seen it a million times, guys get confidence and they have no fear," said Red Sox catcher Kelly Shoppach. "They're going to go out and execute the pitches because they believe in them."

Buchholz has found himself, as that first inning Tuesday night suggested. It's a re-emergence that is not only of the utmost importance to this year's club but for the foundation of the entire organization.

The Red Sox have structured their future around a select group of players, and Buchholz is one of them. The contract signed by the pitcher in early April of last season was concerned team-friendly considering it put the hurler under organizational control through 2017 thanks to two club options (one for $13 million in 2016 and another for $13.5 million in '17).

But by simply committing to what could be a six-year deal -- including a guaranteed $12 million payday in '15 -- suggests the Sox have been, and will be, banking on Buchholz through the expiration of the current contracts of Josh Beckett, Jon Lester, John Lackey and Daisuke Matsuzaka.

It comes down to the importance of finding perhaps baseball's most valuable commodity -- top-of-the-rotation pitching. And that's a classification the Red Sox are banking Buchholz will continue to fall under.

After Tuesday night, he has started 89 games, carrying a record of 42-26 with a 3.91 ERA and .253 batting average against. In 61 of his starts Buchholz has allowed three runs or less. These are numbers that are very comparable to the first 89 starts for the pitcher perceived as the staff ace entering this season, Jon Lester, who totaled a 41-15 mark, 3.64 ERA and .256 batting average against.

By now, Buchholz has shown enough for the organization to lean on him. It was one of the reasons why the Red Sox' foundation seemed so unstable early on in '12 with the righty trying to find his way.

Let's just say the Buchholz who put up six wins and a 2.00 ERA to help the Red Sox claw back into contention during May 2011 wasn't uncovered. The Red Sox would have been left with a hole they would have an extremely difficult time plugging, not only for the '12 campaign but during a series of seasons in which the original blueprint would be taken back to the drawing board.

But, thanks to moments like Buchholz discovered in the first inning Tuesday night, this part of the Red Sox plan can go forth as originally scheduled.

"I try to forget each start right after it's done, because it might not be the same the next time," he said. "I can't predict how it's going to be. I just have to prepare for the next one."

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